“Is not every man sometimes a radical in politics? Men are conservatives when they are least vigorous, or when they are most luxurious. They are conservatives after dinner, or before taking their rest; when they are sick, or aged. In the morning, or when their intellect or their conscience has been aroused; when they hear music, or when they read poetry, they are radicals.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

1840s, Essays: Second Series (1844), New England Reformers

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Ralph Waldo Emerson 727

American philosopher, essayist, and poet 1803–1882

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A conservative is someone who admires radicals a century after they're dead.
A conservative is one who admires radicals centuries after they're dead.

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